Canciones populares españolas

In 1913, a singer asked Manuel de Falla to suggest some Spanish songs for a recital she was giving, prompting him to write the Canciones populares españolas. All seven settings are based on pre-existing Spanish folk songs, tweaked harmonically by Falla and framed as formal art songs for a concert setting. In the opening “El paño moruno” (“The Moorish Cloth”), the piano imitates the strumming of a flamenco guitar as the singer relates the gnomic tale of a stained piece of fabric now worth less than it should be. “Seguidilla murciana” is propelled by a galloping dance rhythm, though the starkly contrasting “Asturiana” seems inconsolably sad. “Jota” is another swirling dance, while “Nana” is a mesmeric lullaby cradling a child to sleep. “Canción” sways restlessly as a faithless lover is indicted, while “Polo” concludes the cycle with the impassioned outburst of a spurned lover, the piano stabbing out staccato notes in sympathy.